Would a Rose by any Other Name Smell as Sweet?

It's now time to start the name game - the process of finding that perfect name for your little baby, the name you absolutely adore, only to have your husband toss it out like old stinky cheese, simply because he once knew a girl with that same name who, unfortunately, was a filthy tramp. Aaagh! Deflated.

Luckily, "Arabella" isn't a common name that carries a lot of baggage.

Isn't it funny how names are so much more than just a few letters put together to make a pretty sound? They usually come with personalities attached to them, and those personalities are different for each person. Take the name "Stephanie", for example. I could never give my daughter that name because of the little second grade Stephanie with the messy hair who always tucked her skirt into her tights, and went around like that all day long. I don't think she was very nice either, come to think of it. Now on the other hand, Alex might have known the sweetest girl alive named Stephanie, but there's no way in hell he'd ever get that name past me. In my mind, she'll always be that unkept little girl climbing around on chairs showing her underwear to the world.

What happens when parents finally get through all the back and forth of finally settling on a name? Why, you want to tell the world, of course. HOORAY! you've finally found that perfect name for this perfect little person that you will soon meet on that perfect day in the not-so-distant future. So you eagerly tell your mother-in-law only to find her reaction less than enthusiastic. What? There's a girl on a soap opera you watch with that exact same name, and she's overbearing, dishonest and to put it bluntly, a real bitch?! Fantastic. Thinking you'll get a better reaction from someone else, you tell a close friend and you get the telling pause and then "Oh... that's different." or "nice" or, even worse, "huh." - no reaction at all.

What are we looking for when we share the baby's name with our friends and family? We are looking for them to be overjoyed and amazed by the beauty, just like we are. We want them to say things like "Wow! That's the most beautiful name I've ever heard!" or " I LOVE IT!", but of course, as I said before, we all attribute certain qualities to a name, and have no control over our reaction to it. Unfortunately, due to these unsought after reactions, we start doubting the brilliance of the name, and sometimes the name loses it's shiny glow and becomes a cold lump of poo. Undesirable -just like Stephanie.We were lucky that most people adored the name "Arabella", but there were a few people who waited to tell us that they didn't really like it until AFTER she was born.

That is why, my loved ones, despite my overflowing excitement to share this name that we love so much, we are going to wait to surprise you all with this perfect name until our perfect little angel is born. I will give you a few hints, just because I love games so much:

The name is just as beautiful as "Arabella" and just as unusual.
It's Spanish but has its English and French equivalents.
It also ends in 'a'
There's one more clue in this post, but I won't tell you what it is!

So, have fun, and enjoy the wait! I actually love it when couples decided to wait to announce the name because it adds an element of surprise to the birth. We've taken out the gender surprise, so now we have the name surprise! I hope you all feel the same way.

Love, Sarah